Hannah Glass had no idea when she opted to eat a baked brownie that her parents would be picking up her cremated ashes days later. The college student had always been cautious about her peanut sensitivity, but something about the delectable delicacy killed her after only two bites.

Glass had turned 19 just two days prior.

A Wisconsin community is mourning the terrible death of Hannah Glass, a brilliant and kind freshman at Maranatha Baptist University who died as a result of an unforeseen allergic reaction to a brownie.

On November 5, the young woman, who had turned 19 two days previously, reacted violently to a brownie she got from a friend. The youngster had a documented peanut allergy and was normally cautious, but she had no idea the sweet delicacy apparently contained roasted peanut flour, a gluten-free alternative.

“The second bite, she knew something was wrong,” Hannah’s father, David Glass, told WISN. The father then stated that her friend had brought her the brownie from a college women’s club and that while the goodie was manufactured using peanut flour to suit gluten-free students, it did not take into account people with severe peanut allergies.

“We believe because this product contained roasted peanut flour, separate from oily peanut butter, that masked this,” added David, who, together with Hannah’s mother, Janean, traveled about 45 minutes from their home in Milton, Wisconsin, to the school residence in Watertown.

‘The right lung collapsed.’

Hannah’s response was forceful and rapid. Her father says she threw up, broke out in hives, and found relief with Benadryl.

However, when she crept up to her top bunk to rest, her situation altered abruptly.

“When Hannah moved onto her side, the anaphylactic response that we had never seen before struck forcefully. The response prompted her to pant for air, resulting in the collapse of the lung, aggravating the condition,” the bereaved father says in a Facebook post he uploaded on November 11.

Hannah walked down the ladder from her bed and lost consciousness “partway down” before receiving her EpiPen injection.

“I picked Hannah up…and carried her outside to wait for the ambulance to arrive,” the grandfather wrote. “She was completely unresponsive, and I was incredibly helpless.”

Paramedics came and battled frantically to resuscitate Hannah, but her heart had stopped for four minutes. She was transported to Watertown Hospital and then moved to Froedtert Hospital, where she was placed on a ventilator.

Brain ‘terminally injured’

Her family watched helplessly as physicians struggled to save her life, but the damage was extensive.

“The majority of her brain was unmistakably, seriously, critically, and, without life-sustaining measures in place, TERMINALLY damaged,” David writes on Facebook about the brain damage experienced after suffering many seizures, which resulted in “severe brain swelling.”

“There were no discussions on quality of life or anything like that. The subject was literally a matter of life or death!”

Despite the diligent efforts of medical personnel, Hannah’s brain sustained significant damage, leaving her with little prospect of recovery.

‘Endless Walk’

Before Hannah’s final goodbye on November 10, 2024, she was honored with a traditional “Honor Walk,” a heartfelt homage as she was led to the operating room for organ donation.

About 300 people lined the hallway walls for the trek, and her family accompanied her until their “final goodbye.”

“It seemed like an endless walk, yet it was also going too quickly,” David told me.

‘It’s good to have her home.’

“We went and collected Hannah’s cremated remains. It was and remains an odd blend of feelings”. There is still a strong sense of disbelief,” David says in a Facebook post from November 22, 2024. “Having this concrete, tangible legacy of her physical existence and body is great in one way because we now have something to see and ‘hang on to,’ but it is also incredibly sad because the present is not the same relationship that we had before. But it’s lovely to have her home.”

Now, her parents are encouraging others with food allergies to “always be aware.” “Make sure your EpiPens are up to date,” David said.

Hannah’s organs have already rescued four others who required life-saving transplants.

Hannah Glass’ tale serves as a tragic reminder of how precious life can be, as well as the significance of raising food allergy awareness. Her memory lives on in the hearts of those who knew and loved her, as well as in the lives she saved.